Lorito-bey Baker?

Gaudreaubey Baker is a movement started by Boston College fans to promote their sensational sophomore sniper Johnny Gaudreau (also nicknamed "Johnny Hockey," in reference to Texas A&M's Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback, Johnny Manziel, known colloquially as "Johnny Football." Are we all on page with the various nicknames now? Good. Let's get back to the post). 

Yeah, Johnny Gaudreau has earned his accolades. But
it's time for our guy to get his props. 

And there is a great case to be made for Johnny Hockey to win the Hobey Baker award- college hockey's finest honor. He missed three of BC's games while winning a gold medal with Team USA at the World Junior Hockey Championships in Ufa, Russia over winter break, and still has compiled 31 points in 18 games. That's a 1.72 points per game average, which is by far the best in Division 1 college hockey. 

But Brown's own Matt Lorito has, I believe, earned himself a spot in the discussion for Hobey Baker finalists. He's compiled 13 goals and nine assists over the course of 18 games. The 22-point total gives him a 1.22 points per game average, a number that ranks him in the top 20 nationally. 

Lorito, henceforth known on this blog as the Ontario Onslaught, is fifth in the nation in goals with 13, one more than Johnny Hockey himself has scored. He has scored five power play goals, good for ninth in the country. He's added a shorthanded goal, just to prove he can come through in almost every circumstance. 

Lorito has tallied a point in all but five games this season, and has accounted for multiple points in a game seven times this year- including a hat trick against Army and a trio of assists against Harvard this past Saturday. He has scored two of Brown's six game-winners this year, and has only taken two penalties all season. 

At this point, you may find yourself thinking, "that's nice and all, but he doesn't match up with guys like Gaudreau, Nebraska-Omaha's Ryan Walters (15-21-36, 24 GP), or even ECAC rival St. Lawrence's Kyle Flanagan (11-18-29, 21 GP)." 

Statistically speaking, you're right. There's no denying it; the numbers do not support a case for Lorito being Hobey-worthy. 

But there are more factors, including less prominent numbers, to consider. 

Lorito has accumulated 22 points. The next highest scoring Brown skater is defenseman Dennis Robertson, with 12. He has one goal. Chris Zaires has five goals, and Nick Lappin and Ryan Jacobsen have four each, meaning that Brown's second, third, and fourth-highest goal scorers have combined to match Lorito's total of 13. 

The Ontario Onslaught has done a heck of
a lot of celebrating this season. 

To say the Ontario Onslaught has carried Brown's offense is a laughable understatement. He has been a factor on just about half (22 of 45) of the team's goals this year. He does not have a supporting cast that is capable of picking up the slack when he is off, and so when Lorito does not produce, the team is often ineffective on offense. 

The games in which Lorito did not score a goal or assist on one are: Dartmouth (Ivy Showcase), at Dartmouth, Clarkson, Providence, and Minnesota St. 

Brown did not win one of those games. Their record was 0-4-1, including a 7-0 shellacking in the Mayor's Cup versus Providence. That gives the Bears a respectable (especially when considering the absurd amount of injuries this team has fallen victim to) 6-4-3 record when Lorito gets a point. 

Let's compare Matt Lorito's situation to that of the leading Hobey finalist himself, Mr. Hockey: 

Boston College has four players with more than 20 points. Brown has five with more than ten (BC has seven, including the guys with 20+). In fact, those four BC players all have as many points as Matt Lorito- Pat Mullane has 11-16-27; Steven Whitney has 14-12-26; and Kevin Hayes has 6-16-22. Gaudreau, as previously mentioned, has 12-19-31. 

At this point, you might be thinking that these statistics devalue Matt Lorito's performance. After all, BC alone has four players with equal point totals. How does that make Lorito Hobey-worthy? 

I think those numbers are actually further evidence of Lorito's achievements this year. 

Johnny Gaudreau has Pat Mullane, Steve Whitney, Kevin Hayes, and plenty of others, including Bill Arnold (10-9-19), to feed him the puck, and to whom he can also dish the biscuit, something he's done plenty of. 

As for Matt Lorito? Who are the Ontario Onslaught's star-studded accomplices? Why, none other than Chris Zaires, Garnet Hathaway, and Ryan Jacobsen! These guys are household names, right? 

I don't mean to disrespect these players, because they represent Brown University tremendously and have shown incredible heart this year in the face of unfathomable adversity. But they are very obviously not on the same level as the kind of players Boston College has. So the point is this: Matt Lorito doesn't have any other offensive stars to work alongside, and he still has more goals than Johnny Gaudreau, and has proven to be an invaluable asset for this Brown team in the 2012-13 season. 

Does Matt Lorito deserve to win the Hobey Baker? Does the Ontario Onslaught deserve his own Lorito-bey Baker t-shirt and Twitter campaign? 

No, probably not. But I think my underlying point in all of this is that he's not getting enough recognition for essentially carrying a team that could easily be dead in the water right now. Instead, it is relevant to the home-ice and even first-round bye races exactly halfway through ECAC conference play. 

I wish Brown had some players around Matt Lorito that could put up 25-30 points a year. I even wish Brown had a few more guys who would reach 20 points consistently (we might see one or two besides Lorito reach that threshold this year, but that's it). If Lorito could play with some more really talented offensive threats, I think he could put up 40 points a year (or more). 

And hopefully in the next couple of years, we'll see him reach that potential. Hopefully, some guys on the current roster (Jacobsen, Lappin, Mark Naclerio, Massimo Lamacchia, Matt Harlow, etc.) can turn into that caliber of player. And there should be some excellent recruits coming to College Hill in the next couple of years who could really make a difference. 

Until then, we'll have to dream of a day where Matt Lorito's superb year will gain the national recognition it deserves. Until then, we'll have to sing his praises on our own.